Cruse, Lonnie

PERSONAL:

Born in Las Vegas, NV; married.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Metropolis, IL. E-mail—lonniecruse@Hughes.net.

CAREER:

Mystery writer.

MEMBER:

Sisters in Crime, Guppys, Heartland Writers Guild, Southern Illinois Writers Guild, Women's National Book Association.

WRITINGS:

MYSTERY NOVELS

Murder in Metropolis ("Metropolis" mystery series), NaDaC Publishing (Metropolis, IL), 2003.

Murder beyond Metropolis ("Metropolis" mystery series), NaDaC Publishing (Metropolis, IL), 2004.

Married in Metropolis ("Metropolis" mystery series), NaDaC Publishing (Metropolis, IL), 2006.

Malice in Metropolis ("Metropolis" mystery series), NaDaC Publishing (Metropolis, IL), 2007.

Fifty-seven Heaven ("Fifty-seven" mystery series), Five Star (Detroit, MI), 2007.

Also author of Lonnie Cruse Blog.

SIDELIGHTS:

Mystery writer Lonnie Cruse is the author of two series of mystery novels, the "Metropolis" mystery series and the "Fifty-seven" mysteries series. She sets both series in her hometown of Metropolis, Illinois, where she has lived for several years. Cruse is involved in a number of organizations that support her mystery writing, including Sisters in Crime, the Southern Illinois Writers Guild, and the Women's National Book Association. On her home page, she credits her success to her involvement in these writing organizations, where she volunteered her time and was connected to other writers. Cruse entered the manuscript of her first book, Murder in Metropolis, into seven writing contests, placing in the final of four of them.

Cruse began publishing her "Metropolis" mystery series in 2003 under NaDaC Publishing, her own publishing house. The series caught on quickly and garnered Cruse a following of mystery novel fans. The iconic Superman figure that is featured on each novel in the series is an homage to an actual Superman statue that stands guard outside the Metropolis county courthouse.

Cruse published the fourth book of the series, Malice in Metropolis, in 2007. The book, as with the rest of the novels in the series, features main character Joe Dalton, the sheriff of Metropolis. While Metropolis is a real town, Cruse's characters are all fictional. The novel begins with Dalton waiting for someone to meet him a deserted, rural area, when suddenly he is shot and left for dead by an anonymous gunman. While Dalton survives the attack, he soon realizes that his family, coworkers and town officials all have become targets of this assailant. The sheriff scrambles to maintain order in the town and keep the citizens out of harm's way while rushing to investigate the crime spree and identify who is responsible for the shootings. Dalton suspects that these crimes are related to a former case he worked on. Malice in Metropolis was a successful addition to the "Metropolis" series, with readers and critics noting the book's fast pace and likeable characters. Cruse "has developed some great characters for her ‘Metropolis’ series," wrote one critic on the Reviewed by Liz Web site.

In 2007, Cruse also published the first novel of her next mystery series, Fifty-seven Heaven. The "Fifty-seven" mysteries series also is centered in Metropolis, Illinois, starring main characters Kitty and Jack Bloodworth, an active, retired couple. In Fifty-seven Heaven, a dead body is found inside the trunk of the Bloodworths' restored 1957 Chevy. The body is that of Will Ann Lloyd, the annoying and abrasive cousin of Kitty, with whom Will Ann argued with the night before she died. The Bloodworths' alibi for that night is solid, but Kitty proves determined to get to the bottom of the murder and Will Ann's anger toward her. She goes to visit a private investigator Will Ann was in contact with before she died, and on her way is run off the road and seriously injured … an attempt by Will Ann's killer to make Kitty stop investigating the murder. But this doesn't stop Kitty from trying to solve the mystery. Fifty-seven Heaven made for a popular debut to the author's second mystery series, with readers lauding Cruse's talent at writing gripping and fun-to-read thrillers. Critics especially liked the author's new heroine, Kitty Bloodworth, "whose debut reveals a real talent for solving crimes," commented one Kirkus Reviews contributor. Others found Fifty-seven Heaven an all-around likeable novel. "It's fun to go along for the ride," noted a critic for Publishers Weekly.